IT has been said on many occasions that David Moyes has transformed Everton’s fortunes but here is the ultimate proof – the Blues have won their last two penalty shootouts.

Once reduced to jelly by the thought of settling a game from 12 yards, the opposite is now true and the masters of turning bleak situations on their head came up trumps against the MLS All-Stars this morning, just as they did against Manchester United in April.

Never mind being outplayed for much of a 90 minute encounter that ended 1-1, forget about the small squad or – most significantly – the transfer speculation which continues to swirl around one of their most important players.

Typically, Everton dug in to record another first – inflicting defeat on the All-Stars – and ensure 10 fruitful days on this side of the Atlantic have ended in the best possible fashion; nobody in Salt Lake City begrudged them the trophy which was handed to Phil Neville.

If the pomp was over the top in Edmonton four days earlier when they played River Plate, this was on another level; ostentatious, noisy and as far fetched as you could imagine.

It’s unlikely Everton will play in a ‘friendly’ like this ever again.

More press conferences were staged before the game than you would expect for an FA Cup Final but that was a precursor for what went on inside a stadium that was surrounded by some of the most beautiful scenery imaginable.

Roughly about 20 minutes before kick-off, hundreds of local youngsters emerged from one corner waving flags from all over the globe, while a squad of US Marines marched onto the pitch with the Star-spangled banner.

The best, though, was yet to come; with Michael Jordan ensconced in the MLS’ commissioner’s box, two sky divers descended from a cloudless sky with – wait for it – the official match ball. Only in America.

Clearly, this is an event that ‘soccer’ fans take seriously on this side of the Pond but so, too, do the players and with the new season just over a fortnight away, such a competitive assignment was welcomed by Moyes and his players.

What’s more, the side which he selected was a clear indication that he was thinking of the opening day.

Things may change but it could well be that the 11 who started here will line up against Arsenal on August 15.

Steven Pienaar, obviously, will have something to say about that but the South African’s absence with a thigh strain provided an opportunity for Leon Osman – fit after overcoming an ankle problem – to get some much-needed match practice.

Like the rest of his team-mates, Osman is short of peak condition but the way Everton – kitted out in all white – started the contest offered plenty of reason for encouragement.

Louis Saha had already had one chance when Marouane Fellaini sent him sprinting clear – his shot whistled just wide of an upright – but there was no mistake in the 12th minute when he seized upon Stuart Houston’s calamitous mistake.

Strikers of Saha’s quality do not need a second invitation to score if they are one-on-one with a keeper 10 yards out and that’s exactly what he did, nonchalantly sliding his effort past the helpless Kasey Keller.

It has been a privilege to watch him in train in the past few days. Everything he has done has screamed class and this point must be stressed: if he stays injury free, Saha could be the most exciting striker to wear a Blue shirt since you know who.

There were gulps in the among the American Press corps at that moment, as they were suspicious that the MLS had bitten off more than they could chew. So there was evident relief among the home crowd when they equalised on 26 minutes.

Conor Casey, a muscular forward who plays for the Colorado Rapids, held off Leighton Baines in the area and slipped a ball across Tim Howard’s six-yard box to the far post, where Houston Dynamo’s Brad Davis was waiting to tap in.

Having spent long hours on the training ground over the past 10 days, working on making them a more proficient defensive unit, Moyes was evidently unhappy with what he had seen and was immediately up out of his seat to bark at his back four.

Normally you would expect Everton to regain a semblance of order without much fuss yet that goal seemed to rattle them and Howard was needed to make saves from Casey and Fredy Montero in quick succession.

The second period started as inauspiciously as the first had ended and a mistake from Joleon Lescott was nearly punished to the maximum by Landon Donovan, who had just come on as a substitute.

Given he had also been partly fault for the goal that Ariel Ortega scored in Edmonton, it provided further proof that Manchester City’s crude courtship is having a detrimental effect in more ways than one.

This saga has been rumbling on for far too long and City need to accept that no matter how high they go in their bidding, Moyes has no interest in selling Lescott.

In fairness to Lescott, he rediscovered his equilibrium soon after and it was encouraging to see him directing traffic at the back, telling his midfielder when danger loomed, not to mention listening to the advice that Howard was shouting out behind him.

He needed to be listening, though, as the All-Stars remained on top and should really have taken the lead on 76 minutes when a mistake by the wilting Saha ended up at the feet of Donovan but, six yards out, he ended up hitting the inside of the post.

Dead on their feet in the dying minutes, it looked for a moment in injury time if they would be denied the chance to go to penalties but Howard came to the rescue with a super save from Davy Arnaud’s powerful header.

As he did in the ensuing shootout; three blocks from Davis, Arnaud and Freddie Ljungberg enabled Everton to recover after Jo and James Vaughan missed their first two kicks, ensuring that the tour ended as everyone had hoped – with a silver lining.